Marcus Ford annual 5K Memorial set for Saturday

The Marcus Ford 5K Memorial run/walk will be held Saturday, Sept. 28 at the New River Valley Mall entrance to the Huckleberry Trail, Christiansburg.

Ford graduated from Christiansburg High School in 2007 and from James Madison University in 2011. He accepted a job his senior year in college with Grant Thornton LLP as a consultant in Alexandria. Sadly, during his junior year at college, Ford and his family learned he had a hereditary heart disease called Catecholaminergic Polymorphic Ventricular Tachycardia (CPVT). His battle with the disease ended in Arlington March 17, 2012.

Because of Ford’s love for sports and running, the Marcus Ford annual 5K celebration has been created in his honor. Those closest to Ford, including his aunt, Tracey Woolwine Sherman, founder of the 5K, cannot think of him without celebrating the kind of person he was and remembering the thousands of lives he touched.

All monies raised for the Marcus Ford annual Run/Walk 5K Celebrations will go to his scholarship. The Marcus Allen Ford Memorial Scholarship is given each spring at Christiansburg High School to a graduating senior who exemplifies the person Ford was to everyone he met.

Registration for the event starts at 8 a.m. and the run/walk begins at 10, with a $15 donation to participate. There will also be T-shirt sales and raffles. Pre-register early at www.marcusford.org. If you are unable to attend the 5K but would like to make a donation to the Marcus Ford Scholarship, please visit http://www.marcusford.org/donate_only. For more information, contact tracey3610@yahoo.com or call 540-392-2189.